Sarkisian: ‘We Got To Bang That Door Open’

during the college football game at Sun Devil Stadium on October 19, 2013 in Tempe, Arizona.

Steve Sarkisian (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

(1090 The Fan) — The Washington Huskies have been knocking on the door, hoping to reach a level the football program hasn’t seen since the early 2000’s, for what feels like an eternity now.

Every opportunity the program has had to seemingly take that proverbial “next step” has come and gone without being seized. Washington head coach Steve Sarkisian is tired of being “right there.”

“It really feels that way. But as I said Monday, I’m tired of being right there. I don’t want to settle for being right there, I want to win those games,” Sarkisian said. “When we do it’s going to be awesome. We’ve got to knock through that door. We got to bang that door open.”

This week the Huskies are preparing for a sturdy test against an explosive Oregon State offense which is ranked second in the FBS with an average of 396.3 passing yards per game behind quarterback Sean Mannion and stalwart wide receiver Brandin Cooks.

Mannion has completely taken off in his junior season. Through 10 games, Mannion has completed 67.8 percent of his passes for 3,860 yards and 33 touchdowns with 10 interceptions. Meanwhile, Cooks has put up conference-leading receiving numbers with 100 receptions, 1,443 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Sarkisian understands the incredible task that lays before his defense of stopping the Beavers’ aerial assault.

“Their quarterback is obviously a different player, he’s a much more confident player (than last year),” noted Sarkisian. “He’s really throwing the ball accurately down the field. He’s tremendous at it…Brandin (Cooks) is playing at a really high level.”

“They’re as hungry as we are. We’ve both been backed into a corner and one of the two teams is going to come out fighting and win the ball game.”

Cyler Miles Preparing To Start

Redshirt freshman quarterback Cyler Miles is preparing for his first career start for the Washington Huskies Saturday night at Oregon State, with senior Keith Price missing practice time due to a shoulder injury suffered late in the first half against UCLA.

According to both his head coach and Price, Miles has been preparing the hardest he has all season and looks great in practice.

“I think it’s been great,” Sarkisian said about Cyler’s preparation this week. “It’s not new to him. I think he’s really focused, he’s understanding the game plan…He’s a different player than Keith so we have to tailor a few things a little bit differently to him. But all in all, I think he can handle our offense.”

“He’s ready to go,” Price said of his backup. “He’s probably watched the most film I’ve ever seen him watch.”

As for Price, according to both he and his head coach, the senior quarterback has seen his shoulder improve every day since injuring it Friday. Sarkisian noted that resting him for five straight days has really helped his recovery.

“He has really improven every single day, I do know that. I think it was a good decision to just to not allow him to throw…We will get a good read on that (Thursday) and then we will see how he feels Friday.”